Percy joins the Coast Guard
by TheSeventhOlympian
Summary: What happens when Percy joins the Coast Guard and meets three familiar people? Find out in this tale of the heroics of Percy Jackson! NO GODS! ALL MORTAL! Any and all reviews are appreciated!
1. Percy's decesion

Chapter 1

xXxPercyxXx

The day I told my mom I wanted to join the Coast Guard was the day my life changed. If you ask me, she saw I wasn't a little boy anymore. I was a proud, strong young man who wanted to help people. My stepdad, Paul, looked like he was going to burst with pride. "Well, Percy, that certainly is an honorable choice. You have my support." I beamed up at him. "Paul, you've been my second biggest fan since we met. It's good to hear that, coming from you," Paul blushed a little, pleased he had such an impact on me. "But I need to ask my biggest, most supportive fan." I looked at my mom. "So, Mom, what do you say? Can I join the Coast Guard?" She gave no sign of disapproval. "Well, Percy, like all my other answers, I just want you to be happy. And successful. Speaking of which, are you still dating that tramp you met last September?" I groaned. I thought Mom had liked Annabeth. "Mom, she isn't a tramp. It's been seven months! Can you at least stop calling her 'that tramp from September'? Besides, we met in May. We started dating in August. Our first date was in September." Her face almost fell off, so I changed the subject. "So, Coast Guard?" She hesitantly nodded. "Yes, Percy. You can join the Coast Guard."

xXxAnnabethxXx

When Percy said he was joining the Coast Guard, a flood of emotions ran through me. Pride, joy, anxiety, and isolation. Why isolation, you may ask? He would be gone for eight weeks at basic and then he'd be shipped off to God knows where! So, pardon me if I'm not 100% pleased. "Are you sure, Percy?," I asked. He had wanted a lot of things lately, like going to our friend Grover's grave more often. That was touchy for both of us. I mean, I was glad for the change in attitude, but when Grover died of necrotizing fasciitis**(A/N: necrotizing fasciitis is a flesh-eating bacteria, thus explaining Grover having to use crutches.)**in his legs, Percy was a wreck. I was too, but they'd known each other longer and were best friends. Anyway, back to the present. I can't talk about it too long without getting emotional. Which reminds me, I need to visit his family. Focus, Annabeth! At that same moment, Percy spoke up on the other end of the line. "Annabeth? Did you die of shock or something?" I shook myself out of it. "No, just thinking about Grover, you know." It took him a couple seconds to recover from the blow. "Yeah, I get it. Do you want to meet up?" It was our way of relieving the stress. "Sure. We could talk more about your exciting future as a Coast Guardsman!" I did a little "jazz hands" to prove my point, but he couldn't see that. He laughed his very intoxicating laugh. A smile bubbles up to my lips. "Come get me, Seaweed Brain." "Okay, Wise Girl.' We hung up


	2. The Big Question

Chapter 2

xXxAnnabethxXx

When Percy picked me up, I was already outside and had been waiting for about fifteen minutes. We lived on the opposite sides of Long Island Sound. When I saw his beat-up blue truck coming down the street, I smiled. So many memories. He'd been driving since he was 12, but nobody else needs to know.

He pulled up, got out of the driver's side, and opened my door for me in a gentlemanly way. I smiled very ladylike and hauled myself into the cab. Making sure I was all inside, he closed the door and slid over the hood, smoothly landing on the driver's side. When he got in, I just laughed. "You think you're so cool, huh?" Percy chuckled. "Yeah, I do, actually." I rolled my eyes. "Whatever, Seaweed Brain. Where are we going?" His eyes lit up. "I don't know yet. Any ideas?"

Percy regretted asking that as soon as he said it. His eyes were bright, but the decision was still mine. "The National Museum of Architecture," I decided. He groaned like a five-year-old when his mother said he couldn't get ice cream so close to dinner. I smirked. "Oh, shut up Seaweed Brain! YOU asked ME!," I reminded him. He grumbled something about 'stupid architecture' to which I replied by punching him. "Ow! That's my driving arm!" "You have two of them! Get over it." He rubbed his arm, put the truck in drive, and soon enough we were on the highway heading into the heart of New York.

xXxPercyxXx

The National Museum of Architecture?! I've never even been there! Oh, well. There's literally no turning back now. We're on a one-way street. "I don't know where it is, Annabeth." She studied the surrounding buildings. "Turn right up here, then take a left at the second road on the street after we turn."

Following her directions, we ended up at a big gray building with two marble statues of Alpha lions out front. I thought it was going to be boring, but when Annabeth's eyes lit up, I knew I had to act interested. For her sake. I didn't have the heart to tell her I was leaving in two days, and this might be the last time we were together for eight weeks.

I weaved the truck through the parking lot until I found a spot. Pulling in, I saw the motorcycle in the space just in time and slammed on the brakes, sending myself flying forward, only stopped by the steering wheel. "Percy, when will you start wearing your seatbelt?" I shrugged. "When I'm older, I guess." Her stormy gray eyes were flaring with disapproval. I threw up my hands in defense. "Okay, okay!," I said as I pulled the musty leather strap over my chest and clicked it into its holder. God, this freakin' seatbelt was uncomfortable. I felt so contained. I hate containment.

After finding a space in the Godforsaken parking lot, we went into the museum. Annabeth loved it. She knew every national monument and most of the other things. I loved seeing her so happy. I fished around in my pocket for the ring. When I got my prize, I reeled it in. If rings were fish, this one would win first prize at any fishing contest. I put my arms around her stomach. "How about some dinner later?" She nodded. "I think you're planning something. Are you breaking up with me?" I laughed a little. "Oh, yeah. You got me. Nah, Wise Girl. I'll never leave you." And with that, I raised the ring up. "Annabeth Chase, Wise Girl, will you marry me?"


	3. Coronation

Chapter 3

xXxAnnabethxXx

Did… Did Percy Jackson just… Propose to me? I think he did. My eyes are focused on the ring. It was platinum with a… Was that a diamond?! "Percy… Is that a diamond?! How did you afford that?" He laughed slightly. "My parents – mostly Paul – took out a second mortgage on their apartment to help me pay for it." I was so shocked that it took me a couple seconds to register what he said. I stuttered, "A s-second mortgage? For me?" He nodded. "'Course. I'd rather go all out for you than a cheap thing. Look at the carving on the side." I did as told and saw a silver owl carved into the side. I covered my mouth to suppress my gasp. "Oh, God… Percy, it's beautiful! I've never had this much money spent on me. I love it." I turned in his arms. "Yes, Percy Jackson, Seaweed Brain. I will marry you." And then we kissed.

After the museum we went to dinner. He took me to Olive Garden. If you think he's getting laid tonight, you can't be closer to the truth.

xXxPercyxXx

Annabeth loved the ring, she loved Olive Garden, and when we got back to her apartment, she told me to wait in her bedroom. I did as I was told and slumped down on her bed. I heard the shower start up, and a couple minutes later, she came out in a towel… Damn. She looked good. "Jackson, you've earned this." My heart skipped a beat. _Oh, hot damn. I like where this is going._

*NEXT MORNING*

When I woke up, I immediately checked out my surroundings. _This isn't my room. Where am I?_ Annabeth stirred next to me, muttering something about inches. My face flushed red. No matter how long we've dated, she'd never talked about my… privates… until last night. I guess she was just so shocked that she couldn't stop thinking about it. I smiled at the thought and got up, looking for my clothes in the devastation that was once Annabeth's bedroom.

An hour later, the person in question sauntered out of her bedroom. "Nghh… What happened last night?" Now that I think about it, I remembered us drinking some vodka straight from the bottle. I was over 21, and technically Annabeth was my fiancée, so it was legal. She shuffled over to the couch and literally faceplanted into my lap. "Mornin' Wise Girl. Sleep well?" She groaned. "Shut up Percy. I'm not in the mood for your crap today." I laughed and rubbed her back. "Whatever you say, baby."

*NEXT DAY*

xXxAnnabethxXx

It was the day of Percy's coronation**, **and I was nervous. I was nervous because I didn't want him to leave. In City Hall, mothers, fathers, girlfriends, and boyfriends were either straightening their son/boyfriends' clothes or hair, or telling their daughters how proud they were, or their girlfriends they were doing something they couldn't. I couldn't do anything to Percy because as soon as we got here, he was hauled off into the back. Right now, a tall blonde guy with electric blue eyes and a tattoo of a lightning bolt was going into the back, followed by a nagging girl with choppy brown hair and feathers braided in. "Jason, don't ignore me! JASON!," the girl cried after her boyfriend. I had to suppress a laugh. She sighed angrily and made her way over to me and plopped down beside me. "You don't look old enough to have a son or daughter joining today. So I'm guessing a boyfriend?" She implored. Just to mess with her, "No, actually. My girlfriend is joining up." It was like a floodgate opened and drowned the villagers living in her cheeks. "Oh, God, I'm so sorry. I-I just assumed-" I just had to laugh. "Kidding, kidding! My boyfriend is here today. His name is Percy, Percy Jackson. My name is Annabeth Chase by the way." We shook hands. "Piper. Piper McClean." I choked. "McClean?! As in Tristan McClean's daughter?!" She smirked nodded. "The one and only."

xXxJasonxXx

Piper was mad. That wasn't a good sign. The Coast Guard representative that guided me through the building took me to a small, gray room with about seven other recruits in it.**(A/N: The Coast Guard is the smallest branch of the United States military, so there aren't always many recruits.)** "Sit in here and wait until Petty Officer Hedge arrives. He'll escort you to the room where you'll swear in." I nodded silently and sat in a semi-circle of a Latino elf, a perfect Californian surfer dude(with the tan skin and everything)and a Chinese guy. As soon as the door closed, they erupted into quiet conversations. The elf introduced himself. "Hey. My name's Leo, but you can call me the Stud Muffin." I immediately though, _'Hell no! Leo works just fine.'_ The Chinese guy was Frank. Frank Zhang. "Nice to meet you, Frank." Frank just nodded. The surfer, Percy, was cool. I liked him. He'd lived in New York his entire life.

Just as we were getting comfortable, a man in a navy blue Coast Guard Bravo uniform busted in. All talking stopped. "All right, cupcakes. On your feet!"


	4. The boy behind the jokes

Chapter 4

xXxFrankxXx

Petty Officer Hedge scared the living daylights out of me. Well, that wasn't too hard, but he really, _really_ scared me. "All right, cupcakes. On your feet!" We all shot up out of our chairs and were quieter than Death as he inspected us. "Follow me, cupcakes. And for the love of God, try not to get lost on the way!" Hedge turned around on the ball of his foot and marched down the hall and into a wooden, red-carpeted room with a Coast Guard pedestal and other military decorations. "Wait here. E3 Clarisse LaRue is getting your family members as we-well, I-speak. Put your feet shoulder-length apart and grab your wrist in your hand." He inspected all of us, and stopped at me and quietly said, "Your right wrist in your left hand. Fix it, but don't make the same mistake." I silently corrected myself, and the much shorter man patted me on the back. "There you go, cupcake." He went to the front of the room and did the same as us at the pedestal. Soon, our families came in, and I searched the lake of faces for mine. Then, I saw my grandmother, and girlfriend Hazel. A warm feeling spread through me. Hazel was my best friend. She had been since she moved to New York from New Orleans with no friends. Hedge's booming voice woke me from my daydream. "Welcome, friends and family of these brave recruits. Please, during the Oath, no photography or video-recording. Now, with all of that, I turn the floor over to E3 Clarisse LaRue, who will administer the Oath." He did a left-hace and saluted to a brown-haired girl who was also in a navy blue Coast Guard Bravo uniform, with her hair in a neat bun. She saluted back and took Hedge's place. She was taller than Hedge was, but only by a couple inches. She was lean, like a runner, but not like Frank cared. He already had a girlfriend.

E3 Clarisse LaRue Shouted, "recruits, attention!" All eight of us moved to attention and administered the Oath, swearing to defend our home with our lives. Finally, she said, "Families, you have twenty minutes to say goodbye to your recruit before we leave. Recruits, dismissed!," Her voice cracked and her face flushed a shade of bright red, and she cleared her throat.

xXxLeoxXx

I never thought we'd get to start moving again. Standing still is hard for a dyslexic, ADHD guy like me. When she dismissed us to see our family one last time, I just kind of stood there. See, my mom died in a workshop fire when I was seven, and my good-for-nothing dad "went to get cigarettes" about seventeen years ago. So, yeah. I didn't have any friends or family. I'd spent my teen years running from foster homes, so even if they did remember me, they wouldn't have known I was here today. So with that depressing thought, I put my hands into my pockets and stood there feeling sorry for myself until Hedge yelled, "All right, wrap it up! We've got a two hour drive ahead of us. All the recruits started moving towards the door. I was rooted to my spot until Jason hit my elbow. "Come on, Stud Muffin, we gotta get going." I nodded and was the last recruit out. Down the hall, everybody was waiting for Hedge and Clarisse LaRue. I was going to them until… "Valdez, come here a moment." I turned and saw Hedge waiting for me, and dutifully walked over to him. "Yes sir?" He put his rough, calloused hand on my shoulder. "You'll never be alone here. No matter how hard the camp is, remember that Grace, Zhang, and Jackson are your friends. LaRue and me, we'll be there too. Remember that, will you?" I was so stunned, I couldn't react. Nobody had ever been that nice to me. "Yes sir. I'll remember that." He nodded gruffly and began walking. "Oh, and Sir?" Hedge turned. "Yes, recruit?" I met his beady-eyed gaze. "Thank you."


	5. Frank done goofed

**A/N: Sorry, but I noticed some errors so I took this chapter down to fix them. Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 5

xXxPercyxXx

I woke up when the bus started rolling into Cape May, the nations only Coast Guard training camp. The seriousness set in immediately. The whole bus quieted down, and when we stopped, a man in a navy blue Coast Guard Bravo uniform and a Company Commander hat stepped onto the bus. "ALL RIGHT, SOLDIERS, ATTENTION!" We all stood up and stiffened. "My name is Petty Officer Luke Castellan. I'm only one of the many Coast Guard Company Commanders. I'm also the most forgiving, so hope you get me. If you don't get me, you'll probably get Petty Officer Gleeson Hedge. From now on, the first and last thing out of your mouths will be either 'sir' or 'ma'am'. Understood?" "SIR, YES SIR!" He nodded, satisfied. "Good. Now, get off this bus in 10 seconds." He gets into an empty seat. "GO, GO, GO!" The flood of people scrambled to get off the bus and into lines like the Petty Officers outside the bus were ordering. They didn't care if you were fast, slow, skinny, fat, blue, purple, or red. They said 'jump', and you said 'sir, how high sir?' _Yep,_ I thought. _This is gonna be a long eight weeks._**(A/N: Oh, Percy, you have no idea. I'm only just beginning.)**

xXxJasonxXx

The first week was murder. We woke up every morning at 5:00 A.M. to "FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!" Then we'd run outside in our 'go-fasters', a white t-shirt, and black gym shorts. We would march a mile, have breakfast, march another mile, swim to see who could handle being a rescue swimmer, which Percy was always the best at. I was always second, Frank was always fourth, and Leo was seventh, sixth, ninth, twelfth, or thirteenth.

Finally, after a week, we were split up into our units. All four of us were in Yankee 189. Percy and I were the captain and co-captain. Percy would focus on helping people with their personal issues, while I was the one who focused on working as a unit; a team effort.**(A/N: I had to think about who did what. Percy being the Greek, he was perfect dealing with personal things. Jason being the Roman, it only seemed right that he'd do the group stuff.)**Anyway, it was killer on all of us. I swear, Frank kept calling out, "Attention on deck!," in his sleep, making everybody wake up and fall out of bed at ungodly hours of the morning. When we realized it was a false alarm, we groaned and climbed back into bed and fell asleep again. _God damn, I miss Piper_.

*SIX WEEKS LATER*

xXxFrankxXx

Training was all right. We had already received our assignments. Percy, Jason, Leo and I were in Anchorage, Alaska. Where the Hell is Anchorage, Alaska? _Alaska,_ my brain retorted. _ Duh._ "Shut up," I said. Jason thought I said it to him. "I didn't say anything!" I blushed a little. "Not you, man. I was talking to… uh… Casper?" he just stared blankly at me. "Uh… Right… I think it's cool that all four of us are in the same place. Don't you?" Honestly, I hated the idea. But the others were happy with it. It was exactly what they wanted. Me? Not so much. But, I smiled. "Heck yeah man! It's gonna be a blast!" He nodded, beaming widely. "Only a week until we see our girls again. I can't wait. I miss Piper like Hell. I can only imagine Percy. He and his girl, Annabeth, got engaged two days before he left." I whistled. "Is Percy an idiot? She's probably lonely." Jason chuckled. "He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, you know." I laughed. The only thing Percy cared about was food and the swimming tests. As far as he let on, that is. Suddenly, I stopped shining my Bravo uniform shoes. I had totally forgotten to call Hazel. Jason looked over. "Earth to Zhang. You okay, man?" I quickly got up and got permission to call her. What I got wasn't pretty.


	6. Leo's dissection

Chapter 6

xXxFrankxXx

Hazel was mad. She was exploding on the other end of the line. "Hazel, I know, I know, I'm sorry. It just slipped my mind." I expected her to yell some more, make a scene in front of Petty Officer Castellan. Instead, she calmly asked, "How are you, Frank? How are you, _really?_" I was happy she calmed down. It was a new record for her. "I'm doing well Hazel. Really, I am. I have friends here. We're even stationed at the same place." She waited patiently as I told her about Jason, Leo and Percy. When I was done, she immediately asked the dreaded question. "So, where are you stationed?" I gulped. _Now or never, Frank._ "Anchorage, Alaska."

xXxLeoxXx

The training had left us all sore and discouraged. How could you possibly want to do something _this _soul-crushing? I mean, I've heard harsh stuff before, but the CC's were dishing it out way more than I could give back. That is, if I _wanted _to give it back to their stupid, ugly little- No, Leo. That's just your emotions talking. I had nothing against the CC's, personally. Just doing their job. I bet when they aren't in I-have-a-stick-up-my-ass mode, they're pretty cool. Speaking of which, the other day I heard Petty Officers Hedge and Castellan talking about how badly they wanted to return to their ship in Anchorage, Alaska. The _U.S.S. Princess Andromeda._ Fastest Search & Rescue ship in the fleet. Anyway, back to the training. If I didn't have nothing to return to, I would've left weeks ago. But since my old apartment building burned down,(hey, don't look at me)I don't have anywhere to go except Alaska. Ironic when the most welcoming place in your world is one of the deadliest places in everybody else's world. I just laughed to myself, looked up from shining my Bravo uniform shoes, and saw that Frank wasn't in the barracks with Jason and I. "Yo, Jason. Where's Frank?" he didn't look up from his shoes and said, "He went to go call Hazel. Do… Do _you_ have anybody to call?" I shied away a little. "No. My mom died thirteen years ago. My dad has been 'getting cigarettes' for… close to eighteen years now. Must be a long line." Jason laughed. It was cool that we got along so much, but he suddenly got serious. "Do you have anywhere to go? Like, an apartment or something?"

xXxJasonxXx

Leo looked like he'd just seen a ghost, so I tried to break the tension. "Leo? Did I break you?" He didn't even blink. That's freakin' creepy. I got up and shook him until he awoke from his daze. "Leo, are you okay?" He nodded. "To answer your question, Jason, no. I have nowhere to stay." My heart sunk a little. Poor Leo. "I'm sure Piper wouldn't mind if we had a guest for a week before we ship off. You're welcome to stay with us, man. Just make up your mind before graduation." Leo looked up gratefully. "Jason… I… I don't know what to say. Thank you." I smiled. No problem, Repair Boy." It was the nickname he'd earned, what with him being a natural at fixing and building technology. He smiled. "Or Stud Muffin." "No, Repair Boy works just fine."


	7. Graduation day

Chapter 7

xXxAnnabethxXx

*GRADUATION DAY*

Sally, Paul and I waded through the school of families of recruits, but everybody moved out of the way when they saw me. _Huh, so being pregnant DOES have some perks._ I smiled politely as they let us past, murmuring small "thank you's" and "excuse me's". Finally, when we burst through out into the open air, we looked around the camp that had been Percy's home for the last eight weeks. God, I wanted to take pictures of the buildings. So elaborate, yet so subtle. Suddenly, I was greeted by a "Good morning ma'am!" from a nearby recruit. I smiled. _They sure are respectful. _Again, I looked at the buildings. The urge was overwhelming, until finally, "Ma'am, it's alright to take pictures. In fact, I'd be honored." An older man with salt-and-pepper colored hair was beaming at the buildings like he'd designed them. He looked familiar, but I couldn't place it. "Thank you, sir. My, these buildings are impressive." I pulled out my camera and did a few improv shots. The man just laughed a little and extended his hand. "My name is Archimedes Daedalus, world-famous architect and designer, though I prefer to just be called Daedalus." I shook his hand. This was the man who had designed some of my favorite projects. "Like, _the _Archimedes Daedalus?! The one who re-designed the Athena Parthenos statue? The one who re-designed the Coliseum?!" The man nodded, happy to be recognized. The one and only" I freaked out. "You… You're my hero! I've always, _always_ wanted to meet you!" Daedalus chuckled. "Yeah, I've been told my work is impressive.'

xXxPercyxXx

Standing at attention _sucks._ I know it's graduation day, but the CC's were pushing us harder than ever, which is saying something. Petty Officer Castellan had to be somewhere else, taking care of the graduation area. So instead of him, we got to deal with Petty Officer Hedge all morning.

The sun was starting to rise when we started the day in our navy blue Bravo uniforms. The uniforms were smooth, silky pieces of work done by Selene Arachne, world-famous clothes designer and weaver. Many say it's her namesake that gives her her talent. I think it was inborn. "Move, cupcakes! Graduation day only happens once!," Hedge bellowed into the early morning air. "Forward, march!" The people at the front started marching to the grassy field where graduation was being held. _So close, yet so far away._

xXxAnnabethxXx

Mr. Daedalus escorted us to the graduation area and invited us to sit with him. After being such a nice host, I would've felt bad not accepting his kind offer. We babbled on about architecture until units X-Ray 189 and Yankee 189 marched in. I spotted Percy in the back of Yankee 189. God, he looked handsome.

They stopped and began the ceremony. Sally and I and every other wife, mother, sister or girlfriend bombarded them with pictures. I think I got 1,760 pictures of them(mostly Percy).

After the ceremony, we looked through the crowd of new Coast Guardsmen and finally found Percy. Percy's face when he saw us was picture-perfect, so naturally, I took a picture of him. When he saw I was pregnant however, that was even better. _Snap,_ goes the camera shutters. He runs over to me, hugs me, and whispers in my ear, "You didn't tell me." I hugged and kissed him back and said, "Surprise."


	8. Airport fun

Chapter 8

xXxLeoxXx

*ONE WEEK AFTER GRADUATION*

Jason, Frank, Percy and I were at the New York International Airport with Petty Officers Castellan and Hedge, although Castellan insisted on being called Luke until we got to the _U.S.S Princess Andromeda._ And I have to admit, I like Luke a whole lot more than Petty Officer Castellan. I was too busy daydreaming when the line moved, so Percy nudged me. "Follow Jason. We have the same military orders, so we've probably been cleared by the TSA." I grinned widely. "Wicked. They'd have a heart attack if they saw my 'collection'" Percy raised an eyebrow. "Dear God, Repair Boy. Don't even think about it. Speaking of which…" He unzipped my backpack and felt around for any lighters. Little did he know, it was up my sleeve.

"Next!," the TSA woman called. I stepped forward. "Name , ID, and proof of military orders, please," she said, sounding bored. I dutifully obliged. She looked it over, looked at me, and waved over another security guard and quietly whispered. The man nodded and asked me to come with him. _Oh, joy, _I thought as I was dragged to airport security. _More airport fun!_

xXxJasonxXx

Leo was brought to airport security with the rest of us. We'd been there for about ten minutes until he stepped in, followed by Hedge and Luke. Luke cleared his throat. "Sorry to give everybody a scare, but there's a drug raid going on here. A big one. The TSA has asked for the Coast Guards help." He waved over to six Coast Guard ODU(Operational Duty Uniforms), all with our first initial and last name stitched over our right breast pocket and our rank, E1, E2, E3, E6 and E7. Leo was the E1, Frank was the E2, Percy and I were the E3's, Luke was the E6, and Hedge was the E7. Luke picked his up along with a Coast Guard ODU hat. "Well, guys? Don't just sit there. We're the United States Coast Guard. Homeland Security. We have to act like it. That means dealing with this drug raid. Suit up and meet back here in ten, understood?" After a collective "yes sir," we took our new uniforms and changed, meeting up in 9 minutes and 45 seconds.

xXxFrankxXx

The ODU was the first thing I'd ever worn that didn't have to be manipulated to fit me. So yeah, I loved it. The hat was a nice touch, too. Luke was the last to approach the group. "All right, guys. Take your military ID to the security office and get the military-grade pistols reserved for us." Leo frowned. "I thought nobody but airport security could carry a gun here." Luke smirked. "We're on active duty for the next five hours, then we're on a private plane all the way to Anchorage." We all groaned, except him and Hedge. "Come on, guys. Spread out. Percy, west wing and baggage claim. Jason, east wing and new arrivals. Leo and Frank, south wing, passenger pick-up and drop-off. Hedge and I will take the north wing. Any questions? No? Good. Spread out."


	9. The drug raid

Chapter 9

xXxPercyxXx

When I got to baggage claim, I informed the TSA of my orders and they pointed me to a guy in a navy blue Coast Guard ODU and a hat, just like me. He was only an E2, so I pulled rank. I walked over to him. In his hands were the leashes to two German Shepherds, both fully grown, but one was almost fully black with a little bit of chestnut-brown on his hindquarters. The other was tannish- brown and they both leaned forward in their leashes to sniff me. I let them, and then looked up at their holder, who saluted me. "Sir, these are our top-of-the-line drug dogs, Blackjack and Arion. My name's Will Solace. Castellan said you're one of the new guys. Welcome to the Coast Guard." He handed me Blackjack's leash. Blackjack freaked out and jumped up on me like, _Yo, boss! Nice to meet you!_ Then, he stopped, started sniffing the air and started running off, but Arion was faster and jumped on a big, black leather suitcase and barked wildly, scaring most of the poor airportians. Will tried to pull him down, but he wouldn't budge. Blackjack was irritated too. "Will, get that suitcase off of the conveyer belt." Will did as told. Arion jumped down as soon as Will touched the suitcase.

I ripped open the suitcase and saw twenty small bags of crack cocaine. Arion and Blackjack went insane, barking and snapping at the bags. Will and I had to pull them away. I turned to the TSA workers. "Call the owner done here. The name's 'Michael Yew'" The woman nodded and picked up a telephone from the receiver. _"Michael Yew to baggage claim, Michael Yew to baggage claim."_ I stood up and looked at Will. "Now, we wait."

xXxJasonxXx

When the woman came on over the overcome and said, _"Michael Yew to baggage claim, Michael Yew to baggage claim.," _ that Percy had found something. An Asian man walked past me, accidentally bumping my shoulder, and stumbled a little before looking at me. "I'm sorry. I'm a little clumsy sometimes." I nodded. "It's okay. Don't worry about it." He nodded back, then extended his hand. "Michael Yew." We shook. "Jason Grace." He smiled sideways. "Coast Guard, eh? The army's better." He didn't give me a chance to object and continued on his way to baggage claim. _Wait,_ I thought. _Michael Yew? Why does that ring a bell?_ Then it hit me. "Hey, Michael!" Michael stopped and turned. "Yeah?" I started advancing on him. "We both know why you're being called to baggage claim." He opened his mouth to reply, but then he bolted down the hall. I started running after him and grabbed my walkie-talkie. "Michael Yew is attempting to run to the airport pickup area!" A couple seconds of silence, and then, _"Roger that. All units move in! Yew can't escape! Can you give a quick description?"_ I kept chasing him and looked at his clothes. "Tall Asian male, red shirt and black skinny jeans!" Michael jumped over a couple suitcases and knocked them down in front of me. Cursing, I jumped over them, barely making it across. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw two German Shepherds running after Michael. The lighter one jumped on him and rolled him over, baring his fangs in Michael's face. I ran up and got the dog off of him and restrained him.

Michael swore up and down on his mother's grave that the suitcase wasn't his. I had no idea what he meant until Percy brought a large, black leather suitcase that the two German Shepherds barked madly at.

Sure enough, the tag said _Michael Yew_. I whistled. "Yew, you're screwed."


	10. The blackouts

Chapter 10

xXxJasonxXx

Something about dogs tackling people that makes the day a little shorter. Luke and Hedge hauled Michael Yew off to airport security where he waited for local officers to bring him in. When Luke and Hedge got back, Luke was beaming widely. "Great job guys. Lunch is on me!" A collective cheer went up from all of us, including the guy that ran in with Percy. I would have to ask about him later. Anyway, all of us were psyched for free lunch. I saw Leo and Frank, and thought about how far they'd had to run. I patted Leo's shoulder. He smiled in between breaths. Frank wasn't tired at all. I guess that's what training does to you.

After lunch, we spent the next four and a half hours keeping watch over the rest of the airport until, _"Coast Guard flight to Anchorage, Alaska, Coast Guard flight to Anchorage, Alaska, you may now begin boarding at gate A4."_ I was right by that gate. I looked out the window and saw a private Coast Guard jet, just for us. Percy and Will showed up first without Arion and Blackjack. "Where are the dogs?" Percy looked a little sad. "They had to be put on the plane." Will laughed and hit his arm. "They'll be fine. Blackjack seemed to like you. I'll see what I can do about arranging his ownership to you." That seemed to do the trick.

Luke, Hedge, Leo, and Frank showed up with their carry-ons and started boarding the jet. In no time, we were taking off and on our way to Alaska. Leo tapped my shoulder and I looked over at him. "You've been awake since 5 A.M. Go to sleep." I glanced at my watch. It was 8 P.M. "All right. Wake me when we get there. He nodded. "All right. See you then." I closed my eyes, and slept.

xXxFrankxXx

I can't believe it. We're actually on the way to Anchorage, Alaska. I texted Hazel before we left. '_Hazel, we're on the plane. I gotta go. I love you'_ Turning my phone off, I got comfortable and fell asleep.

xXxLeoxXx

An hour into the flight, I was incredibly bored. The mini-fridge was loaded with never-ending food and drinks, but I wasn't hungry. _Who are you, and what have you done with Leo?,_ my mind thought. _Leo is back at Cape May. He was reverted too many times._ I laughed. Reversion would've sucked.

xXxPercyxXx

Keep it together, Percy. This plane isn't going to crash. _Oh, right,_ I thought. _That's what dad said before…_ _Oh, no… Not again!_ He couldn't stop the blackout.

_When my eyes opened, I was on a plane, but a different plane in my five-year-old body, waking up from a nap._

"_Dad? Are we there yet?," asked a young version of myself. Dad looked up from his book and checked his watch._

"_Soon," he finally said._

_I sighed. Suddenly, the plane shook, and I gripped the arm rest for dear life. "Don't worry Percy." He sounded pretty worried. "It's just the turbulence." _

_The plane shuttered violently, and the oxygen masks dropped down, the things from the beginning of the plane ride. The 'fasten seat belt' light flashed to life._

_Poseidon Jackson, only concerned for his son's safety, pulled the mask over his face and firmly held it, and then made sure his seat belt was securely fastened._

"_Dad, what about you?," I asked, terrified. He shook his head. "Some things, Percy, are worth dying for."_

_The plane hit the ground and I blacked out. When I woke up, a man was carrying my away from the wreckage of a plane. _**My** plane, _I thought._

_The man set me down and asked what I remembered. After I told him, he asked me to look around for my dad. I did, and couldn't see him. "He's not here,"_

_The man nodded and went back into the wreckage._

_That was when they pulled my dad's broken, lifeless body from the wreckage_

"_Dad…? DAD!" I got up and ran over to the corpse that used to be my father. The two men carrying it laid him down. I looked down to my dad's face. "Dad…" One of the men put his hand on my shoulder. "It's okay, boy. Everything'll be okay."_

Another hand on my shoulder, _my_ shoulder, not blackout-Percy's shoulder, woke me from my reoccurring nightmare. It was Jason. "Percy, we're here. You need to see this."


	11. An Alaskan welcome

Chapter 11

xXxJasonxXx

Leo had woken me right before we landed. I thanked him and looked out of the window. _Wow, Alaska is beautiful._ I wanted to look out there all morning, but I heard Percy moaning something. I stopped looking out the window and leaned closer to him. "Dad… Dad…" He shifted uncomfortably in his chair like he was having a nightmare. I got up and shook him awake. He responded and groaned. His eyes were red and puffy like he'd been crying, so I didn't ask. He had been awake for longer than I had been, so I didn't know if he had a bad dream or if Annabeth had broken up with him over the flight. Well, I guess _break up_ isn't the right term. More like _divorced_. But why would he talk about his dad in his sleep if he and Annabeth divorced? I shook my head. They wouldn't divorce. They needed each other. Maybe now more than ever. He looked up at me and we made eye contact. "Percy, we're here. You need to see this."

When we were off of the plane, Arion and Blackjack were taken off as well. Luke dropped his bags, inhaled deeply, then turned to us with a smile on his face. "Welcome to Alaska, boys. It's summer here, as you can tell by the lack of ice." He glanced at Will. "Call it in, Will." Will smiled. "I've been waiting to hear those words." He took out a black walkie-talkie, like the ones we had at the airport. "Land to the _Princess Andromeda, _land to the _Princess Andromeda_. Come in." A couple seconds later, a gravelly voice replied, _"_Princess Andromeda _to land, _Princess Andromeda _to land, come in. Is that you, Will?"_ Will smiled. "Yeah. Pull the ship around to the dock and let us on. We got some fresh meat, as promised." The ship in the distance blared its horn in response. I could hear some people shouting in glee as the ship sailed toward the dock.

Ten minutes later, the cruise ship-sized ship pulled into the dock and dropped anchor. Luke cheered in long-awaited anticipation. The gangplank dropped, revealing a way up and down onto the ship. Several Coast Guardsmen flooded off the ship to surround and carry us onto the ship. Luke, Hedge, and Will had expected it, but Leo, Frank, Percy and I hadn't. When they picked us up, all I was concerned about were our bags, but more crew members had come off and they shouldered our bags and carried them up after us. I relaxed and let the river of people take me where they wanted to. What was that saying? _Go with the flow._ Yep. I liked this flow.


	12. The phone calls so far away from home

Chapter 12

xXxPercyxXx

As soon as our crew dropped us off on the deck, Luke told us to call our loved ones. I took out my phone and dialed my apartment. Annabeth picked up. "Percy… It's three o' clock in the morning!" I flinched. "I'm sorry, Annabeth. I can call back in a couple hours, if you want." She sounded tired. "No, it's okay. I'm glad you called. How was the flight?" I caught my breath. _It's okay, Percy. You can trust her._ "I had another blackout." She knew all about my blackouts. "Oh, Percy. Are you okay? What was this one about?" I shuddered and stepped away from the group and leaned on the railing. "The crash." She gasped. "Oh God Percy. I'm sorry. Do you… do you want to talk about it?" I had to think. "No. I'm okay. My training starts later today, so I won't be able to talk." I sensed her waiting. "Alaska is beautiful, Annabeth. It's the second-most breathtaking thing I've ever seen." She repositioned herself in bed. "What's the first?" She was definitely more awake now. "You. Any day of the week, in any clothes. Without makeup. Oh, God, especially without makeup." I could feel her smiling. "If you weren't in Alaska, I'd kiss you." I laughed. "That's good to know, because I want to bring you up here some time soon. God, I miss you already. Take care of yourself, okay?" I could feel the tears building. I wanted to stay there and talk to her forever. I knew she felt the same. "The ship is amazing as well. I'm gonna get a dog. His name's Blackjack. He's the most energetic dog I've ever met and…" I continued about useless facts about Alaska and the Coast Guard, and she listened to every word.

Because she loved me.

xXxJasonxXx

I called Piper, and I saw Percy step away from the group, looking distressed. "Hello? Jason?" I perked up at the sound of her voice. "Piper! Hey, I'm here. The ship is amazing, Piper. I… I really wish you were here, though. I don't feel the same without you." She was silent for a moment, and sighed deeply. "I want to be up there with you, too Jason. I miss you. It hasn't sunk in that you won't come bac to the apartment. At least, not for a while."

We continued to talk until the very last possible moment, when I lost signal inside the ship. "Okay, I gotta go. I love you." She started to reply. "I love you t-" The connection was severed. I sighed. No connection inside the ship? Great. Just freakin' perfect.

xXxFrankxXx

Hazel had stayed awake and waited for me. "Alaska is amazing, Hazel. I'll send you tons of pictures and record sunsets and sunrises and-" She laughed, a light sound like bells tinkering. "Okay Frank! I understand. I'll save every picture and watch every recording you send. Y'know, I envy you a little. Alaska is beautiful. If you pass the Hubbard Glacier, take dozens of pictures for me. I'd imagine you have to go soon." I sighed. "Yeah." "So let's just talk and enjoy each other for a little bit."

And so we did.

xXxLeoxXx

Believe it or not, I got a girlfriend while hanging out in Jason and Piper's apartment. Her name is Reyna. She told me she wanted to know everything about my airport adventures. I called her cell phone, and she answered it almost immediately. "Leo! Tell me everything! What does Alaska look like? How big is your ship? What will you do?" I answered every question she threw at me. "It's beautiful. The ship is the size of a cruise ship. I'll be piloting the rescue helicopter for capsized ships and fishing vessels."

She sighed. "Well, I hope you like it. Just promise you'll try to be safe." I nodded, but then realized she couldn't see that. "I promise, Reyna.: She had to go. "All right. I'll call you later. Bye." I put my phone up and descended into the bowels of the _Princess Andromeda._


	13. The first day

Chapter 13

xXxJasonxXx

Today, Leo and I were taught the basics of piloting the rescue helicopters on the ship. We were the pilots, if you hadn't already guessed that. Anyway, Leo seemed to know most of the information just be _touching _the damn thing. "Bell 412HP special edition rescue helicopter. Nice. Composite four-blade main rotor, cruising speed at about thirty knots, max altitude, thirty thousand. Forty, if necessary. And I think the tank is full."**(A/N: I wanted to use the same helicopter that was used in The Lost Hero, so yeah; I copied most of it and edited it to Coast Guard rescue needs.)**The engineer, Charles Beckendorf, whistled. "Damn, Leo. It took me weeks to learn all that stuff, and you just _touched it_. That's impressive." Leo smiled mischievously. "Of course, some off-hand research helps too." Beckendorf was speechless. His face was seriously funny, and Leo busted out laughing. I snickered a little, too. He straightened quickly. "Right. Of course. Well anyway, Jason, do you know anything about piloting?" I nodded apprehensively. "I was taught at basic. I remember enough, and Leo and I always got the top two spots." He nodded. "I can work with that."

xXxPercyxXx

The swimming part was easy. The swimming-in-subzero-temperature part wasn't. My swimming instructor, a tan guy named Connor, said you get used to the temperature. "Really?" He smiled and laughed. "No, not really." I sighed and pulled myself out. He threw me a towel. I caught it and dried myself off. "Thanks." He nodded. "No problem, nonrate." I looked at him, slightly confused. "Nonrate? What's that?" He laughed a bit. "It means you haven't gone to A-school yet Don't worry about it. You'll get on the list soon enough." I sighed. "Hope you're right."

**(A/N: sorry about the length of this chapter, but I've been having writers block.)**


	14. The storm

Chapter 14

xXxPercyxXx

*6 MONTHS LATER*

Sirens blared. Loudly. I immediately woke and got my orange and neon rescue suit on and ran to the operations deck. Leo, Jason, and Frank were running in, looking dead tired.

Let me explain. It was raining and storming tonight, with force ten winds. Almost hurricane-force winds, but less wind speed and shorter waves. We pulled ourselves into the Bell 412 and Leo started it up and took off. I had to shout over the wind to get Jason's attention. He handed me a headset, then one to Frank. We put them on, and then I said via headset, "Where are we going? What's the situation?" Leo looked at the monitor and responded. _"Capsized fishing vessel. The _Wizard_, you know, from the show _'The Deadliest Catch'. _It's king crab season, and they were crabbing when a seventy-five-foot wave hit, killing the motors to the engines. They were sitting ducks. Another ship, the _Northwestern,_ was close to them and attempted rescue when they capsized completely."_ I shuddered. The Bering Sea had taken three ships in the last month. I'd only saved one hundred and twenty of about three hundred men. The survivors had taken the initiative and put their survival suits on. A survival suit protects you from the weather, the temperature of the water, and slows down the possibility of hypothermia and raises the overall survival chance to about seventy percent.

After ten minutes of flying, I spotted seven men on a life raft, pulling an eighth man towards it, but the waves battered him, making his grip weaken. Frank let the basket out of the cabin, but this man couldn't wait for the damn basket. He was _dying._ And it was probably because he only had half his survival suit on.

I grabbed a floatation device and jumped out of the helicopter and hit the freezing water thirty feet below at twenty-five miles per hour. It should've killed me, but I guess I'm lucky. I swam towards the man after breaking the surface. When I got close, he threw his arms around my neck and didn't let go until the basket was in sight. I maneuvered over to it and told him to hop in. He scrambled in, pulled the rope twice, and then disappeared into the sky.

I swam over to the life raft and climbed over the edge. "Where is the captain?" An older man with salt-and-peppered brown hair raised his hand. "Surely this isn't your whole crew?" He nodded. "All present and accounted for." I relaxed. "You guys did good, getting your exposure suits on in time. Very resourceful, using the buoy to reel him in. Couldn't have done it better myself." The captain smiled wearily. "What's your name, kid?" I looked up and saw the basket coming down. "In the helicopter, sir. Now is a bad time." He nodded and waited until his crew was onboard before finally climbing in.

As I waited for the basket, a one-hundred-and-five foot wave, the biggest wave I've ever seen, slammed into the life raft, taking me under the currents with the life raft._ What a shitty way to die,_ I thought as I sank. _What about Annabeth?_


	15. The ubreakable breaks

Chapter 15

xXxFrankxXx

The captain was the last crewman on the helicopter. The crew embraced their captain, happy to survive, but then Leo screamed, _"OH DEAR GOD!" _ and the helicopter lurched back, throwing the crew and I to the back of the cabin. After we recovered and the massive wave passed, Leo and Jason were frantically shouting for me. _"Frank, can you see Percy?! The life raft is gone!"_ Jason cried. I jumped up and looked outside. Sure enough, the life raft was gone, along with the coolest guy I knew. "We have to get to him!" Jason looked back. _"How, Frank? We don't even know where he is!"_ I desperately looked around the cabin. Nothing here could save Percy now. Then, I spotted the one-hundred-and-thirty foot rope. A crazy idea popped into my head. I grabbed the rope and a special-edition saltwater-to-oxygen converter and put it over my face. I got in the basket and lowered it and tied the rope to the rings in it, then jumped overboard and turned on my strobe light. If Percy saw it, he would do the same. I kept the rope in my hand and looked through the freezing, murky water. Suddenly, I thought I saw the blinking of a strobe light and heard the unmistakable sound of an underwater scream. _Frank! FRANK! _ I surged forward, but then the rope recoiled and pulled me back. An underwater current pushed the light away, and the screaming was gone. _Dang it! That was him!_

xXxJasonxXx

Seeing Percy taken under the waves was the most horrific thing I'd ever seen. "Frank, can you see Percy?! The life raft is gone!" He sprang up out of his dazed state and looked out the cab. _"We have to get to him!," _he replied. _Obviously!, _I thought as I turned around to face him. "How, Frank? We don't even know where he is!" He frantically searched the cabin, and his eyes rested on a prototype breather and our one-hundred-and-thirty foot rope. He grabbed both, put the mask on and clambered into the basket. He was too big, of course. Under different circumstances, I would've laughed.

He descended into the waves, held steady by Leo's expert piloting skills, tied the rope to the basket, and went under. I saw his strobe light turn on, and we waited.

Five minutes passed until Frank came up again. He climbed into the basket and pulled the rope. Pulling the basket up was _his_ job. Nevertheless, I rose up from my seat and struggled to get him up. The _Wizard_ crew got up and helped me, and in no time at all, Frank was in the cabin.

We flew back in silence. No words could describe the feeling of dread. Nobody could admit Percy could be dead. Nobody _wanted_ to admit that he could be dead. It was an unconceivable idea. Percy was _bigger than life._ How could he just have died like that? A shitty end to a great man, if you asked me. _Oh, God. What about Annabeth?_

When we got back to the ship, I filled Luke in, and he notified all United States Coast Guard ships in the Pacific Ocean about Percy and got promises from every one to look for him. He thanked the last captain, Master Chief Dionysius, and hung up. He sighed heavily. "I need a full report on my desk tomorrow, Jason." And with that he left.

The next morning at three o' clock, I put my report on Luke's desk and headed to the barracks, but I didn't want to sleep. Nobody did, apparently. Everybody was awake and in the dining hall. Leo waved me over. "Everybody thinks you should go to New York to let Annabeth know." I had dreaded this. "Okay. I'll pack my stuff and I guess I leave in a few hours?" Luke nodded. "The jet is already waiting." I nodded solemnly and packed my bags for the trip.

Blackjack was sleeping on Percy's bunk, whimpering as he covered his snout. _Could he sense Percy's life force? No, that's impossible._ I scratched behind his ears, and he kicked. I smiled a tiny, tiny bit. "Have a good day, Blackjack," and continued on my way.

*TEN HOURS LATER*

I stretched. The flight was long and I still had a sense of adrenaline. I looked for Piper. Searching the crowds, I met her kaleidoscope eyes, and she ran over to me and embraced me in my weakest state. "He just went under, Piper… There was _nothing _ we could do…" She cradled me. "Don't blame yourself, Jason. And try to sound upbeat until you give her the news. She's sitting over here." She lead me over to Annabeth, who was reading an Ancient Greek book about architecture. She heard us and immediately shot up. Being seven months pregnant had no effect on her body. She was strong, confident, unbreakable in spirit. "What happened? Where's Percy?" Her stormy gray eyes startled me. More intense than last time, but I couldn't back down. "Percy… he went underwater during a rescue mission. Never came back up." The unbreakable broke right in front of me. Suddenly, the weight of her pregnancy took its intended effect, and she fell back into her seat, her face slack. Tears started to trickle down her cheeks, and the whole section of the airport stopped and looked over, like they sensed something just broke. Annabeth didn't speak, she didn't ask if we knew his status or anything. She just sat there, broken. And I knew I had done it.


	16. The signal is faint

Chapter 16

xXxJasonxXx

Annabeth's spirit broke. Shattered, more like it. I didn't know what to do or say, so I just stood there, looking important in my ODU. The crowds probably thought, _Oh, he's telling her something bad._ _'Bad'_ doesn't cover it. This was the last thing Annabeth had ever wanted to hear. Finally, she muttered something incoherent. Piper leaned in close and asked her to repeat what she said. She brought her head up and locked our gazes. "You let him get taken." I stepped back, surprised at her words. "W-what?" I looked at Piper, who was equally bewildered. She tried to soothe Annabeth. Annabeth pulled away, and accused me of letting Percy get swept underwater again. The whole section was watching us again, but Annabeth didn't care. She made a scene for them to watch and enjoy. I tried to explain to her, but she kept interrupting me; saying I was jealous of Percy and that I didn't say or do anything when he went under.

By now, airport security had come, but I waved them off. I was getting tired of Annabeth's useless accusations and curses. If she didn't want to believe me, that was her own fault. "Piper, take her home. I'll talk to you later." She nodded and took Annabeth to her car.

I turned to airport security. "Sorry about that. Her husband was swept away in the Bering Sea ten hours ago. We're searching for him, but nothing so far." They nodded understandingly, and we continued to talk about small things for about ten minutes until Piper came running back in, a worried look on her face. "Piper, what's wrong?" She was out of breath. "Annabeth… Ran off… Parking lot… Hit by a car…" She doubled over, breathing harder than ever. "Call…an…ambulance!"

xXxLeoxXx

Seeing Jason leave a couple of hours ago was rough. There wasn't anything to do while he was gone except look for Percy, which is what Luke started doing as soon as Jason left. He ordered that six out of seven of the submarines be dropped to help look for him underwater. I doubted he'd be there unless he drowned. _Shit, Leo. You could've jinxed him! Knock on wood!_ I found the nearest wooden object, knocked twice, and then scolded myself. _Come on, man. That's kid stuff._ I thought I was alone until, "It's okay to have superstitions." I whipped around to face the owner of the voice. It was Beckendorf. I relaxed a little. "For a big guy, you're pretty quiet." He half-heartedly smiled. "I've been told." "So have you seen or heard anything on the radar?" He exchanged his smile for a scowl. "No. I don't have a clue where he could be. His tracker short-circuited when the wave hit." I slouched against the railing as my heart sank. "Is there a way to… I don't know… Trace its backup signal?" Beckendorf almost jumped out of his skin. "Leo, that's brilliant! Come on!" He grabbed my wrist and pulled me after him, completely against my will. _You can't fight a grip like this!_, I thought.

We burst through the control room door and sat at the tracking computers. Beckendorf typed a bunch of seemingly random codes, and told me to type Percy's trackers' ID. I found the insertion point and typed it in.

_081893_

A small, very faint signal popped up at about three hundred and ninety four miles northwest of the famous fishing harbor, Dutch Harbor. "There!," I cried out. The whole room stopped what they were doing. Hedge and Luke ran over. "Where, Valdez?" I showed them and Luke's eyes lit up. "Put these coordinates on the main radar." He turned to the people on computers. "We have a crewman to save!"

**(A/N: Whoever can figure out what Percy's tracker number is gets a free virtual cookie! (::) Write a review or PM me to see if you know.)**


	17. What year is it?

Chapter 17

xXxPercyxXx

I woke up on the floor of a wooden room. I was absolutely exhausted. It took all of my strength to lift up my head to look around. The room had a single candle in a lantern secured to the wall. My head pounded from the sudden light, and I laid it back down, passing out upon contact with the pillow.

I woke up again several hours later, or maybe it was several _minutes_ later? Days? Weeks? I didn't know. All I knew was that the wave had kicked the crap out of me, and I was still exhausted. Only this time, I heard talking. I didn't know the language they spoke, but it wasn't English or Spanish. It was more… _flowing_ than English or Spanish.

Finally, a woman came in. She wore a loose tunic, a blue bandana, and brown trousers. She spoke quickly. _"Je suis Calypso. Qui êtes-vous?"_ I had to think. _Je suis… I am... _I looked up_. "Je suis Percy Jackson. Je ne parle pas français." _ The girl-Calypso-laughed. _"Qui était très bien pour aucune connaissance du français!"_ I was lost. She laughed again and switched to English with a light French accent. "I said that was very good with no knowledge of French.Who are you? Where are you from? Why were you floating in the Bering Sea?" I tried to sit up. She helped me, her hands delicate and soft. "I believe we already exchanged our greetings. I'm in the United States Coast Guard, stationed in Anchorage, Alaska aboard the _U.S.S. Princess Andromeda._ I'm a rescue swimmer. A storm last night wrecked a ship, so we went to save them. They made it onto the helicopter when a massive wave swept me under the water." She had a troubled look on her face. "The United States? What are the United States? And what's a helicopter?" I looked at her, dumbfounded. "You've never heard of the United States? Or a helicopter?" A bad feeling settled in my stomach. "What year is it?" She looked up. "The year is 1515."


	18. English no more

Chapter 18

xXxLeoxXx

Once we were a mile from Percy's signal, Luke ordered that the search lights be put on full capacity. Almost immediately, the orange and neon fabric reflected the light, and Luke killed the engines. "Drop the rescue motorboat and go get him. Leo, I want you to drive with Frank and Beckendorf. Ethan? Where's Ethan? Can somebody go get Ethan?" A couple seconds later, a guy in a Green Day shirt and Mountain Dew sleep pants came in. He obviously didn't care about the looks he got. "Yes, captain?" Luke suppressed a smile. "Go with Valdez, Beckendorf, and Zhang to get Percy." He nodded and exited to get properly dressed.

Ten minutes later, Ethan, Frank, and Beckendorf were on deck waiting for the search boat to be uncovered. Once it was, they climbed in and waited for me to lower it into the water. I locked eyes with the engineer and he nodded and pulled the lever that lowers and raises the boat. In no time, we were sailing towards Percy's location. "Frank, can you see anything? Is he in there?" Frank stood. "Yeah, he's in there, but I see blood on his head." I cursed and put the boat at full speed and pulled up right beside him. Sure enough, he had a bad gash on his forehead.

"Pull him in." Frank and Beckendorf hauled his limp body into the boat, and Ethan checked his pulse. "Well, Ethan? Is he alive or not?" My tone was harsher than intended, but I didn't care. He looked up. "Miraculously, yes. He has a bad cut, obviously, but he's breathing." I let out a worried sigh that had been building ever since we got in the water. "All right. Let's get going."

xXxJasonxXx

Annabeth had been hit _by a car?!_ God wasn't making this day easy. I ran after Piper into the parking lot. Annabeth was lying in a heap twenty feet away. Ten feet. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. I was by her side, waiting for the ambulance. I had used the basic CPR we learned at Cape May, and she was breathing normally again. Piper said the car that had hit her was gone. It was a red Porsche luxury car. License plate was something stupid like 2RCH4U.

Once the ambulance pulled up, they reported no broken bones and that the fetus was alive and well. The car hit her hard enough only to give her minor cuts and bruises and a very bad Tylenol headache. "And to stop her breathing," I informed them. They wrote it down on their notepad and insisted on taking her for the night. I agreed and asked Piper, who was still dazed, to go with them. She hugged me and climbed in the back as the ambulance started up.

The ambulance had just disappeared when my phone rang. It was Leo. "Leo, man. What's the news?" He was ecstatic. "We found him, man. But he has a bad cut and is speaking French." I didn't quite believe him, until he put the phone near Percy's mouth. Sure enough, "_Je suis Perseus…"_ He pulled the phone away. "Wow. What could've caused that?" "I don't know. Ethan contacted a doctor friend of his in Dutch Harbor, and we're sailing there right now. I'll tell you more then." I looked around to make sure I was alone, then sighed and collapsed onto the concrete curb. "Annabeth was hit by a car. Nothing major, just a few scratches and bruises. She'll have a headache, but other than that, she'll be fine." He whistled. "Well, make sure she knows Percy is alive." We hung up after exchanging a little more information and I texted Piper to tell Annabeth when she woke up.

xXxPercyxXx

1515. _1515._ What the Hell? _How_ the Hell? I wanted-no, _needed_-answers. "How the Hell did I get here?" Calypso shook her head and spoke in the beautiful accent of hers. "We found you off the coast of Russia, _monsieur._ You were in these clothes in the wreckage of an English ship. There was a battle between the English and the Russian, apparently." I shook my head. "No. _No, _that can't be possible. I'm not from this century." She looked puzzled. "Then, how did you get here?" I groaned. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. I don't know."

She asked her captain and then came back down. "We found you in the water, _monsieur._ Two hundred miles south of here. We can take you to our colony." I nodded. "Please."

After she left, I laid back on my pallet. "God, if you're there, I need to hear you now. How did I get here?" Silence. I sighed. "Please, God. I need answers. I want to go home. To my own time. Please, help me out." I fell asleep.

The next morning, I woke up and looked outside my door. I wasn't _not_ allowed to leave. Nobody said I couldn't. I walked to a staircase that lead above deck. Steeling my nerves, I climbed them and was met by a clod blast of snow and sunlight. I recognized the landscape. _Wait a minute_, I thought. _This is _exactly_ where the _Princess Andromeda_ was docked when we got to Alaska. _ I walked over to a crew member. _"Parle Anglais?"_ The man looked up. "Yes. I don't speak French, however, though I appreciate you trying to be diplomatic. What d'ya need?" I almost cried. "I don't belong in this century. I'm from a couple hundred years from now." The man scowled. "If you're gonna mock me, leave." He turned around. "No, I'm serious! I need help!" he turned around. "You promise?" I nodded. "Promise." He nodded gruffly. "Well, I suppose I can-" His voice changed to Leo's. "Percy, wake up man! Percy!"

I launched up out of the bed in my orange and neon rescue suit. _"Ce que I'enfer?!" _I was surrounded by my friends, minus Jason, and the whole crew. They cheered until Luke noticed my expression and calmed them. "Percy, what's wrong?" He was genuinely concerned. I looked around at them. _"Je ne peux plus parler Anglais!"_ At this point, I was freaking out. I could only speak French. I could only _think_ in French. Frank looked at me and spoke up. "Guys, he says he can't speak English anymore."


	19. The complete language flip

Chapter 19

xXxPercyxXx

I was grateful somebody knew what I had said. _"Dieu merci!" _I looked at Frank hopefully. _"Annabeth est d'accord? Sait-elle que je suis vivant?" _ He held up his hands in a 'slow down' kind of way, then looked at the doctor. "Is switching languages _entirely_ normal? He can't speak English. He's tried." The doctor was dumbfounded. "It's very, so incredibly rare. It's never happened to one of my patients." Frank sighed then looked at me. _"Pouvez-vous au moins comprendre I'anglais?"_**(A/N: Percy asked if Annabeth was okay and if she knew he was alive. Frank asked if Percy understood English.)**I nodded, suddenly aware of all the attention I was getting. Leo was taking pictures of me. I swatted him away. _"Ce qui s'est passé?" _Frank looked tired of my suddenly fluent French. "You were swept away by an underwater current." I wasn't quite sure that was true. _"Ce qui est arrivé à la tête?"_ He moved closer to me. "Something hit your head, giving you a gash." I touched my forehead and immediately winced in pain. Frank shook his head. "Don't touch it!"**(A/N: Percy asked what happened, then what happened to his head.)**

After I explained my weird dream, the doctor gave me pain pills after cleaning out my cut and allowed me to leave with orders to rest, though I had already had enough sleep for a couple days. I was afraid of my dream. At least, I had started calling it a dream.

Luke had told me Annabeth had called on Jason's phone and demanded to talk to me when I was out, so I called her immediately.

_Ring, ring_

_Ring, ring_

"Hello? Percy?" I was sure she was worried sick. _"Annabeth? Êtes-vous d'accord?"_ She was a bit taken aback. "W-what? Percy, what are you saying?" I groaned again. _"Annabeth, je ne parle pas anglais."_ Thankfully she knew enough French to know what I said. "You can't speak English anymore? Come on, Percy don't mess with me like that. Speak English." I was hurt that she didn't believe me. _"Je ne peux pas! Laissez-moi parler à Piper." _She got mad. "Seriously, Percy. Speak in English or I'm hanging up on you." I was getting irritated. _"Je. Ne. Peux. Pas!"_ She sighed. "Okay, Percy! You win!" The line went dead. _"Annabeth, non!"_ I tried again. She ignored all my calls, texts, and even my emails. _This is going to be hard to explain, _I thought. _Sleep doesn't sound too bad right about now._ I climbed into my bunk and Blackjack jumped up with me. We fell asleep minutes later.


	20. Life or Death?

Chapter 20

xXxJasonxXx

Annabeth had been released from the hospital two hours ago. Piper was there with her now and talking to Percy. Apparently Piper was born and raised in France and immigrated to New York when her mother died. Her dad made a fortune acting in France and one of his American actor buddies got him a gig and he took off from there, seeming more American every day. For the first time in a long time, I wondered if I really knew Piper. Anyway, her talk with Percy went well. Annabeth suddenly believed Percy, which spurred a lot of protest from his line. I even caught a few unloving words towards architecture in there. I chuckled and Piper shot me a look, to which I succumbed to silence. She was almost done. _"Merci. Revoir, Percy."_ She sighed, hugged Annabeth goodbye, grabbed her jacket, and went outside with me.

Starting our car, she had been quiet until then. "How long are you here for?" I looked at the date on the clock. "Five days. Why?" She smiled and threw her arms around my neck as she pulled me into a kiss. As we pulled apart, she was tomato red. "Sorry. I missed you." I smiled like a total dork. "It's okay. I think I like it when you miss me." She smiled more and repositioned herself in her seat and pulled her seatbelt on. "You'd better like it when I miss you." I pulled out of the parking spot. "Oh yeah? What if I don't? You'll stop missing me?" She hit my arm. "Damn straight!" I smiled at her, and she smiled back. Her smile melted. "Jason, look ou-" A thousand pounds of force slammed into my door. It should've killed me; crushed my legs and broken my neck. But I survived.

The car was throw about fifty feet away from the impact point and slammed into a tree. The driver's side door fell off completely as we made impact. My head surged forward and hit the steering wheel at forty miles per hour. I lost consciousness instantly, and when I came to, I was in a white room in white clothes; everything was white.

A small, young girl was standing in the other side. She beckoned me forward. "Welcome. Do you know where you are?" I shook my head. I couldn't say 'Yes' or 'No'. She smiled. "This, mortal, is the last stop before Heaven where you can plead your case if you wish to return to Life instead of continuing on to Death, and eventually Heaven." My eyes widened. _I was dead?_ The girl sighed in genuine sorrow. "That's what _all_ mortals think. 'It wasn't my time yet!' they cry. They beg, plead, lie; do anything they can to cheat Death. Some succeed, but not by stealing Life back." She raised her hands. On both sides, an orb appeared, a red one in her right hand and a blue one in her left hand; the red one was Death, Heaven, everything all souls wanted. The blue one was Life, Piper, Leo, Frank, Percy, everybody I knew. Everything I _loved._ I reached for Life. I almost touched it when it disappeared along with Death. It reappeared behind the girl, who wasn't a girl anymore. She was the Judge of Life. "Speak, mortal. Plead your case. If I like it, you'll get a Life Ticket." My voice came back. "Your Honor, I have to go back." She seemed genuinely surprised. "_Have to?_ Not 'want to'?" I nodded. "Yes, Your Honor. I _have _to go back. My friends and girlfriend need me. I don't mind Death. I just don't want to leave my friends. That is all, Your Honor." She studied me. "Your mother said the same thing, young man. Her death was her own fault. She chose to drink and drive. She killed herself by not wearing her seatbelt. She lied and paid the consequences for it. But you. You are sincere. Take this and return to Life, Jason Grace. And tell Piper I said 'hello'." I nodded as a small golden ticket appeared in my hand. I stuffed it into my pocket. "Yes, Your Honor. What should I address you as?" She smiled. "Life."

I woke up immediately, and Piper screamed with joy. She hugged me so tightly that I couldn't breathe. "Pipes," I said. She let go. "Sorry." I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Life Ticket. Her eyes widen. "What's that? You didn't have anything in your pocket before." I smiled. "LIfe says 'hello'. Piper."


	21. The tattoo

Chapter 21

xXxJasonxXx

Piper was confused. "Don't go all 'life-happy' on me." I shook my head. "Piper, you have no idea what I just saw. I-" That's weird. I can't remember. I frowned. "I can't remember. In fact, I can't remember _anything_. Besides both our names, everything is a blank." She had a troubled look on her face as if deciding whether or not to believe me. I wish I remembered our relation.  
Finally, she spoke. "Are you telling the truth?" I nodded. "Yes. I only remember our names." She lightly touched my forehead, and I winced. "Ow. That hurts." She sighed. "God is cruel sometimes." A paramedic came over and told me to look up. When I did, he shined a flashlight into my eyes. "Look up." I did. "Now down." I did. "To the left." I did. "Now right." I did.

He turned the flashlight off, then asked me to lay down for a simple amnesia test. "What is your mothers' maiden name?" I started to answer, but I wasn't sure. "Grace?," I finally said. "I don't know. I barely know my _own_ name." he nodded. "What is your father's surname?" Again, I knew the answer, but it wasn't there. "I don't know." He nodded again and brought out a notepad and began scribbling down notes. "Do you have any siblings?" A thought started bubbling. A girl with… Black hair? "I think so. Her name is… I don't remember. She's in the military. A group of Marines called the Hunters." He finished writing. "You, sir, have one of the worst cases of amnesia I've ever seen."

Piper took me back to our apartment. _Our _apartment? I didn't remember living with her, but I didn't question it. I didn't want to tell her I remembered my past and that my tattoo of a lightning bolt means something else entirely, or how we really met. I inspected the apartment and saw my little collections of useless things I'd gotten on trips. And I remembered Piper went with me on those trips, so she wasn't a total stranger. That reminds me, I didn't even know what happened before… I can't remember. God, that's frustrating.

"Hey, Piper. What exactly happened to me?" She look over. "A drunk worker was driving his work vehicle and slammed into our car. You hit your head pretty hard. That's probably how you got amnesia." _You don't know the half of it, Piper._ She came over and gently touched my cheek. "You remember some things, don't you? About Russia?"

It was like she slapped me and said, _'I'm leaving you for someone better!'._ "Piper, how did you know?" She sighed sadly. "They said you would remember eventually." I backed up. If she knew I was Russian, _what else_ could she know? "Who said that? That I would remember eventually?" Her eyes were just as sad as her voice. "Your sister, Thalia. She said you were in the Hunters for twelve years, and your tattoo has marks under it. It… It just seemed right. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner." I sighed. "You know it means we can't stay together." She grabbed my hand. "We can. If you really wanted to." She rubbed my thigh and got closer to my unmentionables, then kissed me. I didn't pull away; I didn't want to. When she pulled away for air, I said, "This is _so_ wrong." She pushed me down on the bed and mounted me, our crotches rubbing against each other. She smiled and her eyes did their weird kaleidoscope thing. "But it feels _so_ right." She kissed me, and our night of love started.

**(A/N: The Hunters are now a part of the Russian Marines. Plz, no h8. It explains Jason's tattoo, and it's a cool idea to play around with.)**


End file.
